Article aligning means for conveyers



April 26, 1949. s. T; CARTER 2,468,290

ARTICLE ALIGNINQ MEANS FOR CONVEYERS Filed Dec. 28, 1945 s Sheets-Sheet 1 Maw? I jidqey'Z 'arjiar Y I y a w 5.

April 26, v1949. s. T. CARTER ARTICLE ALIGN ING MEANS FOR CONVEYERS Filed Dec. 28, 1945' 3 Shets-Sheet 2 April 26, 1949. T, C R ER 2,468,290

ARTICLE ALIGNING MEANS FOR CONVEYERS Filed Dec. 28,-1945 3 Sheets-Sheet s g; W 14 Z g? n?! a 4 4 27 g v j if V 5 I g 4 s j; I I 1 j f 17; if jj /V' l 54 I| (79 J m mania? Patented Apr. 26, 1949 ARTICLE ALIGNING MEANS FOR CONVEYERS Sidney T. Carter, Worcester, Mass, assignor to Eccnomic Machinery Company, Worcester,

Mass, a corporation of Massachusetts Application December 28, 1945, Serial No. 637,680

3 Claims. P.

This: invention pertains to conveyors and more particularly to an automatic article-aligning means for conveyors. While of more general utility, the'article-aligning means of the present invention is especially intended for use with labeling apparatus wherein two or more labelapplying machines deliver the labeled articles, for instance bottles, to the same delivery conveyor.

When several label-applying machines (or other'machines or devices) deliver articles to a single moving belt conveyor, the articles from the several machines usually flow toward the conveyor along paths whose points of convergence with the conveyor path arespaced longitudinally of-thelatter. The conveyor belt is usually of a i width substantially greater than the width of the article being conveyed, and articles delivered by the several labeling machines, or even by the same machine, commonly take up different positions widthwise of the conveyor belt as they are delivered thereto. However, it is often desirable that allof the articles be disposed'in a single line (thatiis to say, in tandem arrangement) at some portion of the conveyor path, for instance as they approach its deliveryv end. In the endeavor to obtain suchan arrangementof the articles, it has heretofore been proposed to provide convergent stationary guides at opposite sides of the conveyor path designed to-crowd the articles transversely of the conveyor and into a single line.

Were the articles entirely frictionless such an arrangement might function reasonably well, but due to frictional contact of the articles, irregularities in shape, and other factors, the transverse movement of the article by fixed convergent guides, often results in the jamming of the articles and sometimes actual breakage.

The principal object of-thepresent invention is toiprovideautomatically acting aligning means sordesigned as to insure the desired arrangement of the articles in a single line on the conveyor belt without'substantial danger of jamming or injury to the articles;

-A furtherobject is to provide aligning means so designed-asto impart a rapid vibratory motion to thearticles upon the conveyor as they are being moved into-alignment, thereby to facilitate the intermeshing of the articles and to avoid jamming as.-they are moved into alignment. Afurther object istoprovide article-aligning means of simple, inexpensive, but durable and reliable construc-' tion, applicable to existing conveyors without substantial'modification of the latter. Other and further objects and advantages of the invention will be-pointed 'outin the following more detailed description and by reference to the accompanying drawings wherein Fig. 1 is a diagrammatic fragmentary plan view of a conveyor embodying the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary plan view, to larger scale, of the aligning device of the present invention;

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary front elevation of the parts shown in Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary vertical section on the line 4-4 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary vertical section on the line 55 of Fig. 2; and

Fig. 6 is a view generally similar to Fig. 2, but illustrating a modification.

Referring to the drawings the numeral I (Fig. 1) designates article-conveying means here shown by way of example, but without limitation, as an endless belt having a horizontal run constituting a support for the articles A and operative to move them along a substantially rectilinear horizontal path. As suggested in Fig. 1, the articles Aare delivered into this conveyor path by feeding devices, for instance conveyors 2', 3, 4, etc., arranged to deliver the articles into the conveyor path at points spaced longitudinally of the latter. The receiving portion of the conveyor path, into which the articles are thus fed, is shown as defined by fixed parallel guides 5 and 6, arranged at opposite sides respectively of the belt I, the guides being spaced apart a distance greater thanthe maximum transverse dimensions of the articles A. For instance, if these articles are bottles standing on the belt I, the spacebetween the guides 5 and 6 is greater than the diameters of the bottles. Such a spacing of the guides is desirable to insure free entry of the articles from the several feeding conveyors into the conveyor path, but results in the disposition of the articles A at different points transversely of the conveyor path.

Beyond that part of the path into which" the articles are fed there is another portion of the path, for convenience termed the delivery portion, defined by normally relatively fixed guides land 8, these guides being parallel and spaced apart a distance substantially equal to the transverse dimensions of the articles, that is to say, if the articles are bottles, the spacing of the guides l and 8 is but slightly greater than the'diameter of the bottles, so that in passing along this portion of the path the articles A must move in tandem arrangement.

In accordance with this invention, articlealign'ing means 9 is interposed between thereceiving portion of'the path and the delivery 'portion, the aligning means 9 being designed to crowd the articles transversely across the path as they travel along the path, so as to bring them into tandem arrangement as they enter the delivery portion of the path defined by the guides I and 8.

The aligning means 9 (Figs. 2, 3, 4 and 5), in accordance with the present invention, comprises a pair of elongate guides or deflectors II] and II, the guide Ill, as here illustrated, extending substantially parallel to one edge of the belt, while the other guide or deflector II extends diagonally of the belt and in converging relation to the guide I0.

At this portion, at least, of the conveyor apparatus, the belt is supported near its opposite edges by parallel normally fixed but vertically adjustable rails I2 and I3 (Figs. 4 and. 5).

The guides iii and I! converge toward each other in the direction of movement of the articles along the conveyor path, and their adjacent ends are spaced apart a distance approximating the distance between the fixed guides and 8, these adjacent ends of the guides I and II herein being termed the delivery ends for convenience in description. The delivery end of the guide I0 is secured to a member l4, herein shown as vertically elongate and having a horizontally elongate slat which receives a pivot pin I (Fig. 4:), whose lower end is fixed in a boss I6 forming part of a bracket H which is secured to the supporting rail I2 by a bolt I8, or equivalent means. The delivery end of the guide II (Fig. 4) is secured to a vertically elongate member I8 having a horizontally elongate slot which receives a pivot pin 29 whose lower end is fixed in a boss 2| carried by a horizontally elongate arm 22 (Fig. 2) having a longitudinal slot 23 which receives a bolt 24 by means of which the arm 22 is adjustably secured to a bracket 25 attached to the supporting rail I3. By loosening the bolt 24 the member 22 may be moved from front to rear, thus varying the distance between the delivery ends of the guides I0 and II so as to adjust these ends to accommodate articles of difierent transverse dimensions.

The receiving end of the guide rail 1 is mounted in a fixed bracket 26 (Fig. 2) which may be secured to the supporting rail I2, while the receiving end of the normally fixed guide 8 is secured to an elongate horizontal arm 21, similar to the arm 22, provided with an elongate slot receiving a bolt by means of which the arm 21, and thus the end of the rail 8, may be adjusted horizontally. The receiving end of the rail 8 may thus be spaced from the rail 1 to correspond to the spacing of the delivery ends of the rails I0 and II.

As illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2, the free or lefthand ends 28 and 29 of the guides Ill and II are spaced apart substantially the full width of the belt I, the guides being free to swing about the pivot pins I5 and 20, respectively.

The guide I0 is secured at a point intermediate its ends to a vertically elongate bearing member 30 (Fig. 5) which receives a vertically elongate crank pin 3| projecting in eccentric relation from the upper end of a vertical shaft 32 mounted to turn in a bearing 33 forming. part of a bracket 34 which is fixed to the supporting rail I2.

The guide II is secured at a point intermediate its ends to a member 35 having a portion which constitutes a bearing for a crank pin 36 projecting in eccentric relation from the upper end of a shaft 3'! turning in a bearing in a part 38 carried by a bracket 39 which is secured to the supporting rail [3.

The shafts 32 and 31 are provided at their lower ends with pinions 40 and 4| respectively, which mesh with gears 40 and II (Fig. 2) respectively, secured to the opposite ends of a horizontal shaft Q2 arranged below the conveyor I and extending transversely of the latter. A sprocket wheel 43 is fixed to the shaft 42 and meshes with sprocket elements 46 (Fig. 5) carried by the belt I, whereby movement of the belt turns the sprocket wheel 43 and the shaft 12 and thus drives the shafts 33 and 31 with their crank pins 3| and 36 respectively. The turning of these crank pins vibrates the guides I0 and II transversely and longitudinally of the conveyor path. The crank pins 3I and 36 may be so arranged as to cause the guides I8 and II to move toward and away from each other simultaneously, or they may be so arranged that the rails I!) and II move simultaneously in the same direction transversely of the conveyor path. This vibratory movement of the guides It and II imparts a like vibratory movement to the articles moving along on the belt I, and thus as the articles are being crowded together in moving between the converging guides I0 and ii, they are prevented from jamming, and thus flow smoothly toward the entrance to the space between the fixed rails I and 8 and into proper tandem relationship.

In the arrangement illustrated in Fig. 6, the guide Iii with its vibrating means and its pivotal support is substantially as hereinbefore described, but the guide II which is associated therewith, comprises a leaf spring or equivalent construction fixed at its delivery end to the part I9 supported by the adjustable brackets 22 and 22 This resilient guide II is normally curved so as to diverge from the delivery end of the rail II], and when contacted by articles moving along the conveyor path it is free to deflect slightly in response to any jamming of the articles between it and the guide I0, so as to prevent any massing of the articles such as might cause stoppage or breakage. This resilient guide I l in cooperation with the vibratory rigid guide I0, is very effective in aligning the articles in tandem arrangement, and in avoiding any diificulties from jamming of the articles as they are brought into tandem arrangement. Preferably the free end of the guide Il is secured to a bracket member 45 having a pin 46 designed to travel in a curved slot 41 in a fixed part 48, and to this pin is attached one end of a manually actuable rod 49 having a handle 50 at its opposite end. If, by any chance the articles should become jammed, in the space between the converging guides I0 and H the operator, by manipulation of the handle 50, may deflect the resilient guide II out of its normal position and away from the guide I0, thus increasing the space between the guides and permitting any articles which have become blocked between these guides to free themselves and move on along the conveyor path.

While certain desirable embodiments of the invention have been illustrated by way of example, it is to be understood that the invention is broadly inclusive of any and all modifications falling within the terms of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. In combination with means for moving arti-- cles along a predetermined path, aligning means operative to move articles transversely of said path thereby to dispose them in tandem relation, said aligning means comprising article-contacting guides disposed at opposite sides respectively of said path, said guides converging in the direction of article movement, means pivotally supporting the adjacent ends of the guides to permit them to swing, a bearing secured to each of said guides at a substantial distance from its pivotal support, a crank pin arranged within each bearing, and means for rotating the crank pins, thereby to vibrate the free end portions of the guides.

2. In combination with a conveyor belt for moving articles along a predetermined path, artiole-aligning means associated with the belt and comprising a pair of elongate guides converging in the direction of belt movement and arranged respectively at opposite sides of said path, means pivotally supporting the adjacent ends of the guides to permit them to swing about vertical axes, said supporting means being relatively adjustable transversely of the belt, a bracket secured to each of said guides at a substantial distance from its pivotal support, each bracket comprising a bearing portion, a crank pin arranged to turn in each of said bearings, respectively, a shaft carrying each crank pin, a pinion fixed to each shaft, a shaft extending transversely across the conveyor path but out of the path of the articles moving on the belt, gears fixed to said transverse shaft which mesh with the pinions on the crank shafts respectively, a sprocket fixed to said transverse shaft, and means carried by the belt for turning the sprocket.

3. In combination with a conveyor belt for moving article-s along a predetermined path, articlealigning means associated with the belt operable to move articles transversely of said belt thereby to dispose them in tandem relation, said articlealigning means comprising article-contacting guides disposed at opposite sides of the belt, said guides converging in the direction of article movement, means pivotally supporting the adjacent ends of said guides to permit them to swing, a

bearing secured to each of said guides, a crank REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,196,442 Eick Aug. 29, 1916 1,713,684 Wild May 21, 1929 2,315,880 Stiles Apr. 6, 1943 2,373,600 Richey Apr. 10, 1945 

